Abstract
Colloidal lignin nanoparticles (LNPs) from low temperature acid hydrotropic fractionation (AHF) of poplar wood and commercial alkali lignin using
p-Toluenesulfonic acid (
p-TsOH) were directly mixed with PVA to make PVA/AHF-LNP nanocomposite films.
p-TsOH itself acted as a plasticizer for PVA; however the application of
p-TsOH alone reduced PVA film tensile strength and therefore toughness. At proper loadings of LNPs and
p-TsOH, both the failure strain and tensile strength of PVA/AHF-LNP composites were improved. The formation of hydrogen bonding between the
p-TsOH/AHF-LNP aggregates with hydroxyl groups on PVA molecular chains, and the breakage and reforming of
p-TsOH/AHF-LNP aggregates, along with the nanophase crazing due to the presence of
p-TsOH/AHF-LNP aggregates were identified as the main mechanisms for improving the toughness of PVA/ AHF-LNP nanocomposite. The composite also had improved UV shielding performance and biodegradability due to the presence of
p-TsOH and LNPs compared with neat PVA. This nanocomposite film could be used as biodegradable anti-ultraviolet packing film.
Keywords
Lignin nanoparticles (LNPs),
colloidal LNP,
composite film,
toughness,
biodegradability,
UV blocking
Citation
Wang, Huihui; Tang, Xiaoyan; Arvanitis, Matthew A.; Yang, Vina; Stark, Nicole; Liu, Chuanfu; Considine, John M.; Zhu, J.Y. 2021. Colloidal lignin nanoparticles from acid hydrotropic fractionation for producing tough, biodegradable, and UV blocking PVA nanocomposite. Industrial Crops and Products. 168(35): 113584. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.indcrop.2021.113584.